Springs Café, Blue Ocean Japanese, Green Man Taproom

Dine & Dash

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The North End Diner is dead; long live the North End Diner. Of course, the new Springs Café — good luck finding that on Google — isn't exactly like the former tenant. For instance, the walls have been cleaned up into a mostly blank white, but the open kitchen and cozy lunch counter remain, and there's a lot of diner on that menu, to go with the Mexican influences.

In the former Wireworks Coffeehouse on the Riverwalk, 11/2-year-old Blue Ocean performs swimmingly, with complimentary banchan (a nod to the Korean ownership) dropped alongside miso soup and a small salad (orange ginger dressing = yum) even before you order, literally within two minutes of being seated.

A Pokey Salad ($13.95) exudes freshness, its sesame-oil-drizzled sashimi arranged over thin cucumber slivers and green tobiko (roe). The Green Mountain and Pueblo rolls ($13.95 each) find fun, unusual flair: The former packs spicy crab, cucumber and cream cheese under red snapper and kiwi to odd but enjoyable effect, with a sweet finish. The latter places local green chili slivers over salmon and spicy tuna for some serious heat and a buttery backbone. Mango mochi for dessert tastes almost like a Creamsicle. Overall: total win. — Matthew Schniper

I feel like I'm drinking inside the great banquet hall of a half-finished Game of Thrones set, with ornate gold curtains hung from low arches that curve heavenward in this former church. Copper-emblazoned central bar segments reflect divinity-laced late daylight, contrasted by a wide sight-line behind the counter revealing dark scrim tacked over raw wood framing. You've never drunk in a place like this: It's badass.

Forty-four brews from which to choose, many rare and damn-near exclusive? Brilliant. Execution? Full of early growing pains. From menu misspellings to a 10-minute wait to get owner Scott Simmons' attention for our final round, then an accidental failure to apply the Thursday $2 half-pints discount to applicable beers on our bill, overwhelm remains on display at Green Man, a month after launch. Visit our IndyBlog to hear why, all this in mind, I still believe it will reach vegetation deity status, soon. — Matthew Schniper